Mobile track tamper

ABSTRACT

A MODILE TRACK TAMPER COMPRISES A TAMPER UNIT ASSOCIATED WITH EACH RAIL. EACH TAMPER UNIT INCLUDES TWO GROUPS OF VIBRATORY AND VERTICALLY ADJUSTABLE SURFACE TAMPING TOOLS, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS OF TOOLS OF EACH UNIT BEIANG VARIABLE. THE TAMPING TOOS OF EACH GROUP ARE ARRANGED TO TAMP THE BALLAST IN ADJACENT CRIBS SIMULTANEOAUSLY.

March 6, 1973 THEURER E'TAL MOBILE TRACK TAMPER Filed Dec lO, 1970INVENTORS J'os E. F r'HEmRE EKKEHHRDT' .IEMJIR Xu KW GENT United StatesPatent 3,719,150 MOBILE TRACK TAMPER Josef Theurer, Vienna, andEkkehardt Benda, Linz- Urfahr, Austria, assignors to Franz PlasserBahnbaumaschinen-Industriegesellschaft m.b.H., Vienna, Austria FiledDec. 10, 1970, Ser. No. 96,678 Claims priority, application Austria,Dec. 19, 1969, 11,908/69 Int. Cl. E01b 27/16 US. Cl. 104-12 14 ClaimsABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A mobile track tamper comprises a tamper unitassociated with each rail. Each tamper unit includes two groups ofvibratory and vertically adjustable surface tamping tools, the distancebetween the two groups of tools of each unit being variable. The tampingtools of each group are arranged to tamp the ballast in adjacent cribssimultaneously.

The present invention relates to improvements in mobile track tampers.More particularly, this invention relates to the type of track tampercomprising a frame mounted for mobility on a track having two railsafiixed to ties at their respective points of intersection, the tiesresting on ballast and adjacent ties defining cribs therebetween. Atamper unit is mounted on the frame and associated with each rail, andeach tamper unit includes two groups of vibratory and verticallyadjustable surface tamping tools, the tamping tools of each group beingarranged to tamp the ballast in a respective one of adjacent cribs atboth sides of the associated rail simultaneously whereby each tamperunit is adapted to tamp the ballast around the points of intersectionbetween the rails and ties.

The vibratory tamping shoes, plates or rollers of the surface tampingtools used in machines of this general type are almost as wide as thecribs so as to tamp the largest possible area of ballast and thus toincrease the efliciency and uniformity of the tamping operation. Thisfrequently causes difficulties in properly aligning the tamping toolwith the crib to stay clear of an adjacent tie, particularly in caseswhere the tie is not perpendicular to the rails. This difiiculty isconsiderably increased where two groups of such tamping tools form asingle tamper unit for simultaneously tamping two adjacent cribs at bothsides of an associated rail.

It is the primary object of the invention to overcome this disadvantageand to provide a simple structure for making tamper units of thedescribed type useful even on tracks where the ties are irregularlyspaced and/or are not parallel to each other.

This and other objects are accomplished in accordance with the presentinvention by providing means for varying the distance between the twogroups of tamping tools of each tamper unit. With such an arrangement,it is possible to adjust the distance of the two groups of the tamperunit according to the average spacing between the ties in a given tracksection, such spacing norms differing in some countries from thoseadopted in other countries, as well as to make individual adjustment atparticular track points where the tie spacing varies.

According to a preferred embodiment of this invention, one of thetamping tool groups is stationarily mounted on the tamper frame whilethe other group of tamping tools is mounted on the frame for adjustablemovement in the direction of track elongation. The adjustabl movablymounted group of tamping tools is preferably the forward group of thetools in the working direction of the mobile track tamper. It isparticularly useful for the other group of tamping tools of each tamperto be adjustably movable 3,719,150 Patented Mar. 6, 1973 in thedirection of track elongation independently of each other.

With one stationary tamping tool group, the structure retains a relativesimplicity while still being adapted for operation under varying trackconditions, the independent variation of the positions of the movabletamping tool groups of each tamper unit making it possible to align thetamping tools properly with adjacent cribs of various spacing and/orwith obliquely extending ties for simultaneous tamping of such adjacentcribs.

The tamping tools, which may be mounted on a support body, may beprovided with adjustable, for instance hydraulic, drives for theadjustment of the tools, for instance in respect to the support body.Such controllable drives, which may be combined with stop means forholding the tools in position, may be remote controlled to provide forready and easy position adjustments where tie intervals are irregularand/or at double ties while the tamping operation continues along atrack section.

It is particularl useful to provide the machine with control means forvarying the distance between the tamping tool groups in response toasensed distance traveled by the machine, the resultant control signalsautomatically or semi-automatically making the required adjustments,fine centering of the tools in the adjacent cribs being effected eitherby an operator or fully automatically.

The above and other objects, advantages and features of the inventionwill become more apparent from the following detailed description of anow preferred embodiment thereof, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawing wherein FIG. 1 is a side view of a mobile tracktamper incorporating the features of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a partial schematic top view of the machine, illustratingparticularly the tamper units thereof;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross sectional view along line III-III of FIG. 1;and

FIG. 4 is a side view of a tamping tool, taken in the direction of arrowIV of FIG. 3.

Referring now to the drawing, the mobile track tamper is shown tocomprise a frame I mounted for mobility, in a working directionindicated by arrow 6, on a track having two rails 5, 5' afiixed to ties4 at their points of intersection. The tamper frame runs on runninggears 2 and 3. The ties rest on ballast 7 and adjacent ties define cribs8 and 8' therebetween. Tamper units 11 and 11' are mounted on the frameand respectively associated with rails 5 and 5', each unit includingfour tamping tools 9 and 9', respectively, groups of two tamping toolsin each tamper unit being arranged to tamp the ballast in a respectiveone of cribs 8 and '8' at both sides of the associated railsimultaneously. In this manner, each tamper unlt is adapted to tamp theballast around the points of intersection of the ties and rails.

A hydraulic motor 10 is mounted on frame 1 and operatively connected tothe tamping tools 9, 9 of both tamper units for vertically adjusting thetamping tools for engagement with the ballast.

As shown more clearly in FIGS. 3 and 4, each tamping tool comprises asupport body 24 and the tamping tool proper, which in the illustratedembodiment is a vibratory surface tamping shoe 12 which is movablymounted on the support body in a manner to be described more fullyhereinafter. The two tamping tools of each group are vibrated byassociation with a cam shaft 14 rotated by motor 13.

[In addition to the above-described crib tampers, the machine alsocarries vibratory surface tampers 15 laterally adjacent the tie ends andextending over the combined width of the two adjacent cribs 8, 8' sothat the ballast along the edges of the track may be tamped, too, toimprove the efliciency of the operation and increase the quality of thetamping. The operating stand 16 on the machine frame has a control panel17 enabling an operator to control the entire operation in a manner tobe described hereinafter.

In the illustrated embodiment, the support bodies of the tamping shoesof each group of two tamping tools are fixedly mounted on a yoke 21extending transversely of the track in a plane vertical thereto, the camshaft 14 extending through a bore in the yoke and vibrating the same(and the tamping tools) upon rotation of the cam shaft by motor 13. Acommon cam shaft supports both groups of tamping tools of each tamperunit for simultaneous vibration, the shaft 14 being pivotal about ahorizontal axis intermediate the two yokes 21, 21 so that the two groupsof tamping tools of each tamper unit may swing about this axis, the camshaft 14 mounting the tamping tools of the two groups like the beam of ascale. Such a mounting has the advantage that, upon lowering of thetamper units 11 and 11, the individual tamping shoes of the toolsindependently and immediately con tact the ballast in conformity to theballast surface configuration and without subjecting any of theindividual tools to undue contact pressure. Furthermore, this pendulumarrangement of the tamping tools makes the yokes 21 guides for thetamping direction.

Obviously, the illustrated tamping shoes may be replaced by vibratorytamping plates or rollers, as commonly used in surface tampers forballast treatment.

According to the present invention, the four tamping tools of the twogroups of tools of tamper units 11 and 11', which tamp the ballast incrib 8', are mounted on frame 1 for adjustable movement in the directionof track elongation, as indicated by arrow 22 in FIG. 1, so that thedistance between these groups of tamping tools and the tamping tools inalignment with rearward crib 8 may be varied. In the embodiment fullyshown in FIGS. 3 and 4, this adjustment is accomplished by mounting thetamping shoe 12 of each tool on support body 24, the support bodyincluding a guide 25 extending in the direction of track elongation andslidably supporting the shoe 12. A hydraulic motor 23 is connected tothe tamping shoe 12 for moving the same along the guide 25, bothchambers of the hydraulic cylinder being preferably connected to ahydraulic pressure fluid source for supply of hydraulic fluid to eitherchamber for moving the tamping shoe in a selected direction 27 or 28.Stop means, such as a series of bores 26 in the guide cooperating withset screws 29, are provided to fix the tamping shoe in a se lectedposition. Pressure fluid may be supplied to the drive 23 of eachindividual tool independently so that a great variety of individualadjustments of the various tools is possible for adaptation to varioustie spacings. While the tie spacing shown in the drawing is uniform, inactual track maintenance work this spacing is usually found to be highlyirregular, particularly after the-track has been subject to heavytraflic which often causes displacement of ties. Furthermore, the widthof the ties themselves often differs, and even the normal crib width mayvary from track section to track section so that the basic position ofthe tamping shoe 12 may be accordingly adjusted by means of set screws29 being engaged in different bores 26 of the guide 25.

Thus, the adjustment of the position of the tamping tools in thedirections indicated by arrows 27 and 28 may be made manually as well asby remote control of the motor 23 from control panel 17 which includesmeans for controlling the hydraulic fluid supply to the motor.

If fully automatic operation is desired, a track sensor 18, an odometer19 and an indicator 20 are used on the following manner:

The illustrated track sensor includes a signal emitter 31 arranged onthe machine frame for contacting a designed track element, i.e. thetrack spikes orfastening bolts 30.. The signal emitter 31 is aconventional device which produces a limited magnetic field which isdisturbed upon contact with the iron track element to emit a pulse whichis transmitted to indicating and signaling device 20, the controlcircuits connecting the signal emitter 31 and the control panel 17, aswell as the control panel and the indicator 20 being shown in brokenlines in FIG. 1. The track sensor is fixedly mounted on frame 1v toretain a fixed distance from tamper units 11 and 11'.

vAn odometer 19 is also fixedly mounted on the machine frame andincludes a track rail engaging wheel 32 which measures the distancetraveled by the machine in measurable units, such as centimeters, ameasured unit of 100 centimeters being indicated in FIG. 1. The measuredunits produce pulses which the odometer transmits to indicator 20. Themeasured unit (for instance 100 centimeters is adjustable to a desiredvalue corresponding to the distance traveled between the first contactof signal emitter 31 with spike or bolt 30 and the point when the tamperunits 11, 11' are properly centered in adjacent cribs 8, 8'. The signalsemitted by odometer 19 are visually shown in numbers (of centimeters) onscale '33 of the indicator 20. When a fixed distancehas been set, i.e.100 cm., the distance traveled by the signal emitter 31, i.e. 100 cm.,is signaled to the indicator 20 by the odometer, i.e. when the scale 33shows the number 100, the tamper units are properly centered in theadjacent cribs. Since the intermittent advance of the tamper during thetamping operation always corresponds to the width of two cribs (whichare simultaneously tamped during each tamping stage), the controlcircuits are so arranged that only each alternate contact of the signalemitter 31 with spike or bolt 30 is transmitted to indicator 20.

Furthermore, the operator of such an automated machine may additionallyadjust the position of individual tamping tools 9 in crib 8' byoperating the hydraulic drive 23 from control panel 17, the controlcircuit from the panel to the hydraulic fluid supply source for thedrive being shown in broken lines in FIG. 1. However, even this fineadjustment may be automated by providing additional track sensors andodometers for engagement with each rail so that their signals mayautomatically control the fluid supply for fine adjustment of individualtools.

' While specific control means for varyingthe distance between the twogroups of tamping tools of each tamper unit has been described andillustrated, many variations thereof will be obvious to those skilled inthe art of programming.

We claim:

1. A mobile track tamper comprising a frame mounted for mobility on atrack having two rails affixed to ties at their respective points ofintersection, the ties resting on ballast and adjacent ones of the tiesdefining cribs there between, and a tamper unit mounted on the frame andassociated with each of said rails, each of the tamper units includingtwo groups of vibratory surface tamping tools vertically adjustable intoengagement with the'sur face of the ballast for tamping the same, one ofthe tamping tool groups being stationarily mounted on the frame whilethe other group of tamping tools is mounted for adjustable movement inthe direction of track elongation, the tamping tools of each of saidgroups being arranged to tamp the surface of the ballast in a respectiveone of adjacent cribs at both sides of the associated railsimultaneously whereby each of said tamper units is adapted to tamp theballast in the adjacent cribs around said points of intersection, andmeansfor varying the distance between the two groups of tamping tools ofeach tamper unit.

2. The mobile track tamper of claim 1, wherein each tamper unitcomprises two yokes extending transversely of the track in a planevertical thereto, the tamping tools of other group being mounted on arespective one of said yokes for guided movement in respect of the .onegroup, and a common drive for vibrating the'yokes and the tamping toolsmounted thereon.

3. The mobile track tamper of claim 2, wherein the common drivecomprises a cam shaft extending through bores in the yokes, and a drivefor rotating the cam shaft for vibrating the yokes.

4. The mobile track tamper of claim 3, wherein the cam shaft is pivotalabout a transverse horizontal axis intermediate the two yokes forswinging the two groups of the tamping tools about this axis.

5. The mobile track tamper of claim 1, wherein the adjustably movablymounted group of tamping tools is the forward group of tools in theworking direction of the mobile track tamper.

6. The mobile track tamper of claim 1, wherein the other groups oftamping tools of each tamper unit are adjustably movable in thedirection of track elongation independently of each other.

7. The mobile track tamper of claim 1, further com prising means forfixing the other group of tools in an adjusted position.

8. The mobile track tamper of claim 7, wherein the means for varying thedistance is a hydraulic drive for adjustably moving the other group oftools in the direction of track elongation.

9. The mobile track tamper of claim 8, further comprising a guide railfor the movable group of tamping tools and adjustable stop means forholding the other group of tamping tools in an adjusted position.

10. The mobile track tamper of claim 1, wherein the means for varyingthe distance between the two tamping tool groups includes a controllabledrive for adjustably moving the other group of tamping tools in thedirection of track elongation.

11. The mobile track tamper of claim 10, further comprising a supportbody for the tamping tools, the adjustable drive adjustably moving thetamping tools in respect of the support body.

12. A mobile track tamper comprising a frame mounted for mobility on atrack having two rails afiixed to ties at their respective points ofintersection, the ties resting on ballast and adjacent ones of the tiesdefining cribs therebetween, and a tamper unit mounted on the frame andassociated with each of said rails, each of the tamper units includingtwo groups of vibratory surface tamping tools vertically adjustable intoengagement with the surface of the ballast for tamping the same, one ofthe tamping tool groups being stationarily mounted on the frame whilethe other group of tamping tools is mounted for adjustable movement inthe direction of track elongation, the tamping tools of each of saidgroups being arranged to tamp the surface of the ballast in a respectiveone of adjacent cribs at both sides of the associated railsimultaneously whereby each of said tamper units is adapted to tamp theballast in the adjacent cribs around said points of intersection, and acontrollable drive for adjustably moving the other group of tampingtools in the direction of track elongation, the controllable drivecomprising a track sensor arranged on the frame at a fixed distance fromthe tamper units and including a signal emitter operative too emit asignal upon contact with a track element, an odometer measuring thedistance traveled by the tamper and emitting a signal corresponding tothe traveled distance, an indicator, control circuit means transmittingthe emitted signals from the sensor and the odometer to the indicator,and control circuit means conneced to the indicator for actuating themovemen of the other group of tamping tools in response to said signals.

13. The mobile track tamper of claim 12, wherein the signal emitter ofthe track sensor includes a device producing a limited magnetic fieldand designed to emit a pulse upon disturbance of the magnetic field uponcontact of the signal emitter with an iron track element.

14. The mobile track tamper of claim 12, wherein said indicator includesa scale visually showing the numbers of measured units corresponding tothe signals emitted from the odometer.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,380,395 4/1968 Plasser et a1.104-12 3,465,688 9/ 1969 Sauterel =104-12 3,111,909 11/1963 Plasser eta1. 104-12 3,504,635 4/1970 Stewart et a1. 104-12 FOREIGN PATENTS1,156,533 7/1956 France 10412 GERALD M. FORLENZA, Primary Examiner R. A.BERTSCH, Assistant Examiner

